World Health Organization Raises Concern Over Severe Scarcity of Obesity Injections
Less than one in 10 patients eligible to benefit from weight-loss injections like Wegovy have access to them, warns the global health agency as it issues its first recommendations on the therapies.
Considering in excess of 1,000,000,000 people worldwide now classified as obese, it is calling for broader and more equitable availability to GLP-1 medication.
Per forecasts, over two billion could be obese by 2030 if no action is taken.
"Our latest guidelines recognises that excess weight is a long-term condition that can be managed with thorough and ongoing treatment," said its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, insufficient output, and distribution challenges are significant barriers to broad availability to the jabs that can aid individuals in losing considerable weight, notes the organization.
Weight-Loss Drug Scarcity
Even in the current most favorable case, the supply of GLP-1 therapies would only suffice for around 100 million people – fewer than 10% of eligible patients, as stated by the health organization.
The recommendation urges countries and companies to increase availability, through strategies such as patent sharing.
The intellectual property rights on the active ingredient – the primary component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is set to lapse in a number of countries in 2026.
The Way Weight-Loss Injections Operate
These medications mimick a natural hormone to delay gastric emptying, curb appetite and boost the sense of being full so individuals reduce food intake.
Individuals usually begin shedding pounds in the initial weeks of commencing the weekly injections.
Evidence indicates patients may see weight return a year later of stopping the treatment, as their usual food cravings resume.
Being carrying excess weight increases your chance for contracting medical conditions, like diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and specific malignancies.
Excess weight affects individuals in all nations and was associated with over three and a half million deaths worldwide in 2024, per the health agency.
